Price of Tet or Lunar New Year tours are set to jump by up to 10 percent

Hanoi (VNA) - The price of Tet or Lunar New Year tours are set to jump by up to 10
percent, forecast tour operators.

The operators attribute the prospective increases to growing demand and likely
higher transport and accommodation costs.

The length of the break - seven days - and the arrival of overseas Vietnamese and
international visitors are the major reasons for higher price, explained Vietravel
Communication Department director Nguyen Minh Man.

"Customers for the 2011 Lunar New Year - from February 1 - will increase by 30
percent," Man said.

"High demand will see accommodation and transport costs soar, so tour prices will
jump by 7-10 percent", he added.

A representative of the Lua Viet Tours Company agreed that tour prices will
increase by Tet holiday because of higher air travel costs.

The company says the prices for air tickets out of V ietnam have increased between
50 USD and 150 USD.

Despite higher costs, tour operators are trying to keep prices down.

"More expensive air tickets are beyond our control. However, we've still managed to
keep our tour prices low to avoid sudden changes in price," said Man.

Outbound tours to Hong Kong, mainland China , the Republic of Korea and
Japan remain favourite destinations.

Tours to neighbouring countries remain popular due to their price of just 10
million VND (476 USD). Moreover, these tours have not been affected by the dong's
devaluation, said Director of Lua Viet Travel Company Nguyen Van My.

The Vietnam Railway Corporation is set to increase its prices by 20-25 percent on
peak days over the Lunar New Year Festival. - Enditem